Information processing apparatus, information processing system, and information processing method

ABSTRACT

An information processing apparatus in the present invention includes: an acquisition unit that acquires a first biometrics information group including biometrics information on a first person detected from a first image captured in a first area from a registered biometrics information group including biometrics information on a plurality of registrants; and a matching unit that matches biometrics information on a second person detected from a second image captured in a second area that is different from the first area against biometrics information included in the first biometrics information group.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

This application is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/589,636, filed on Oct. 1, 2019, which is based upon and claims thebenefit of priority from Japanese patent application No. 2018-187302,filed on Oct. 2, 2018, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein inits entirety by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, aninformation processing system, and an information processing method.

BACKGROUND ART

Japanese Patent No. 6246403 discloses an entry and exit managementsystem that has an authentication server configured to match inputbiometrics information against biometrics information on a registereduser to perform identity verification and unlocks a gate based onauthentication and permission from the authentication server.

SUMMARY

In the system illustrated as an example in Japanese Patent No. 6246403,a face feature amount of a person captured in an authentication area issequentially matched against face feature amounts of N registrants (N isan integer greater than one) pre-stored in a database. Thus, as thepopulation N of registrants becomes larger, the authentication accuracyor the authentication speed in the face recognition may decrease.

Accordingly, in view of the problem described above, the presentinvention intends to provide an information processing apparatus, aninformation processing system, and an information processing method thatcan improve the authentication accuracy and the authentication speed inface recognition.

According to one example aspect of the present invention, provided is aninformation processing apparatus including: an acquisition unit thatacquires a first biometrics information group including biometricsinformation on a first person detected from a first image captured in afirst area from a registered biometrics information group includingbiometrics information on a plurality of registrants; and a matchingunit that matches biometrics information on a second person detectedfrom a second image captured in a second area that is different from thefirst area against biometrics information included in the firstbiometrics information group.

According to another example aspect of the present invention, providedis an information processing apparatus including: a storage unit thatstores a registered biometrics information group including biometricsinformation on registrants; a first matching unit that matchesbiometrics information on a first person detected from a first imagecaptured in a first area against biometrics information included in theregistered biometrics information group; an identifying unit thatidentifies a first biometrics information group including biometricsinformation on the first person from the registered biometricsinformation group based on a matching result in the first matching unit;and a second matching unit that matches biometrics information on asecond person detected from a second image captured in a second areathat is different from the first area against biometrics informationincluded in the first biometrics information group.

According to yet another example aspect of the present invention,provided is an information processing apparatus including: a storageunit that stores a registered biometrics information group includingbiometrics information on a plurality of registrants; a matching unitthat matches biometrics information on a first person detected from afirst image captured in a first area against biometrics informationincluded in the registered biometrics information group; an identifyingunit that identifies a first biometrics information group includingbiometrics information on the first person from the registeredbiometrics information group based on a matching result in the matchingunit; and an output unit that outputs the first biometrics informationgroup used for a matching operation of biometrics information on asecond person detected in a second area that is different from the firstarea.

According to yet another example aspect of the present invention,provided is an information processing system including: a first camerathat captures a first area to generate a first image; a second camerathat captures a second area that is different from the first area togenerate a second image; a first server that matches biometricsinformation on a first person detected from the first image against aregistered biometrics information group including biometrics informationon a plurality of registrants and identifies a first biometricsinformation group including biometrics information on the first personfrom the registered biometrics information group; and a second serverthat matches biometrics information on a second person detected from thesecond image against biometrics information included in the firstbiometrics information group.

According to yet another example aspect of the present invention,provided is an information processing method including: acquiring afirst biometrics information group including biometrics information on afirst person detected from a first image captured in a first area from aregistered biometrics information group including biometrics informationon a plurality of registrants; and matching biometrics information on asecond person detected from a second image captured in a second areathat is different from the first area against biometrics informationincluded in the first biometrics information group.

According to yet another example aspect of the present invention,provided is a program that causes a computer to perform: acquiring afirst biometrics information group including biometrics information on afirst person detected from a first image captured in a first area from aregistered biometrics information group including biometrics informationon a plurality of registrants; and matching biometrics information on asecond person detected from a second image captured in a second areathat is different from the first area against biometrics informationincluded in the first biometrics information group.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide aninformation processing apparatus, an information processing system, andan information processing method that can improve the authenticationaccuracy and the authentication speed in face recognition.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example of aninformation processing system in a first example embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a positional relationship of aplurality of authentication areas in the first example embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration exampleof a center server and a relay server in the first example embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of the information processingsystem in the first example embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating one example of registrant informationstored in the center server in the first example embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating one example of candidate informationstored in the relay server in the first example embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram illustrating one example of the process inthe information processing system in the first example embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example of aninformation processing system in a second example embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram of the information processingsystem in the second example embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating one example of member informationstored in an external server in the second example embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating one example of the process inthe information processing system in the second example embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example of aninformation processing system in a third example embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the process in arelay server in the third example embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example of aninformation processing system in a fourth example embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the process in arelay server in the fourth example embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a functional block diagram of an information processingsystem in a fifth example embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a sequence diagram illustrating one example of the process inthe information processing system in the fifth example embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example of aninformation processing system in a sixth example embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a sequence diagram illustrating one example of the process inthe information processing system in the sixth example embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a functional block diagram of an information processingapparatus in a seventh example embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a functional block diagram of an information processingapparatus in an eighth example embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a functional block diagram of an information processingapparatus in a ninth example embodiment.

FIG. 23 is a functional block diagram of an information processingsystem in a tenth example embodiment.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the process of arelay server in a modified example embodiment.

FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating one example of information stored in amanagement server in a modified example embodiment.

EXAMPLE EMBODIMENT

Illustrative example embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed below with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, thesame elements or corresponding elements are labeled with the samereference, and the description thereof may be omitted or simplified.

First Example Embodiment

The configuration of an information processing system 1 in the presentexample embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1 to FIG. 6. The information processing system 1 of the present example embodimentis a computer system that manages entry and exit of a number of personsby using a face recognition technology in a large scaled facility suchas an event site, a theme park, a traffic facility (a railroad facilityor an airport), a hotel, or the like, for example.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example of theinformation processing system 1 in the present example embodiment. Asillustrated in FIG. 1 , the information processing system 1 has a centerserver 10, a pre-authentication camera 20, a primary authenticationcamera 30, a relay server 40, and a gate apparatus 50. Each apparatus isconnected to a network NW such as a Local Area Network (LAN) or theInternet. Note that the dashed-line box in FIG. 1 illustrates a basewhere management of entry and exit is performed. Other apparatuses thanthe center server 10 are installed inside the base.

The center server 10 is an information processing apparatus (firstserver) that centrally manages information on the base. While FIG. 1illustrates only one base, the number of bases is not limited thereto.Further, the center server 10 has a registrant information database 11that pre-stores biometrics information on a person who wishes to usethis system (hereafter, referred to as “registrant”). The biometricsinformation may be a face image, a fingerprint image, an iris image, afinger vein image, a palm print image, a palm vein image, or the like.One or multiple pieces of biometrics information may be used.

Note that the term “biometrics information” in the present exampleembodiment means a face image and a feature amount extracted from theface image. A face image of a registrant is obtained by an image filebeing uploaded from a user when the user makes online membershipregistration, for example. Further, the center server 10 and the relayserver 40 each have a function of detecting biometrics information on aperson from a received captured image. A feature amount extracted from aface image (also referred to as “face feature amount”) may be an amountindicating a feature of a face such as a position of a characteristicpart such as a pupil, a nose, a mouth end, for example.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a positional relationship of aplurality of authentication areas in the present example embodiment. Asillustrated in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , the authentication area is generallycategorized in two types of a pre-authentication area (first area) and aprimary authentication area (second area). The pre-authentication areais an area used for performing pre-authentication and is set to aposition that is more distant from a restricted area than the primaryauthentication area. In contrast, the primary authentication area is anarea used for performing final authentication and is set to a positionclose to the restricted area.

The pre-authentication camera 20 is an image capture device (firstcamera) that captures the pre-authentication area to generate a firstimage. As illustrated in FIG. 2 , it is preferable that thepre-authentication camera 20 be installed in a passage, stairs, or thelike through which users necessarily pass when moving to the primaryauthentication area, for example. Further, the pre-authentication areais not limited to one place but may be set in a plurality of places in abase facility. Similarly, the number of pre-authentication cameras 20 inthe pre-authentication area is not limited to one. For example, aplurality of them may be installed in a single pre-authentication area.The primary authentication camera 30 is an image capture device (secondcamera) that captures a primary authentication area, which is differentfrom the pre-authentication area, to generate a second image.

The center server 10 matches biometrics information on a person detectedfrom the first image (hereafter, referred to as “first person”) againsta registered biometrics information group including biometricsinformation on a plurality of registrants and identifies firstbiometrics information group including biometrics information on thefirst person from the registered biometrics information group. Thecenter server 10 then transmits, to the relay server 40, the firstbiometrics information group narrowed from the registered biometricsinformation group (registrant information) as candidate information.

The relay server 40 is an information processing apparatus (secondserver) that performs a face recognition process of a person at eachbase. The relay server 40 matches biometrics information on a persondetected from the second image captured in the primary authenticationarea (hereafter, referred to as “second person”) against biometricsinformation included in the first biometrics information group. Therelay server 40 has a candidate information database 41 that storescandidate information received from the center server 10 side (firstbiometrics information group). The gate apparatus 50 is a passagerestriction apparatus installed between the primary authentication areaand the restriction area. The passage restriction apparatus is notlimited to the gate apparatus such as an automatic ticket gate but maybe a door apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration exampleof the center server 10 and the relay server 40. The center server 10has a central processing unit (CPU) 151, a random access memory (RAM)152, a read only memory (ROM) 153, and a hard disk drive (HDD) 154 as acomputer that performs operation, control, and storage. Further, theinformation processing system 1 has a communication interface (I/F) 155,a display device 156, and an input device 157. The CPU 151, the RAM 152,the ROM 153, the HDD 154, the communication I/F 155, the display device156, and the input device 157 are connected to each other via a bus 158.Note that the display device 156 and the input device 157 may beconnected to the bus 158 via a drive device (not illustrated) used fordriving these devices.

While the above components forming the center server are illustrated asan integrated device in FIG. 3 , some of these functions may be providedby an externally connected device. For example, the display device 156and the input device 157 may be other externally connected devices otherthan a component forming a function of a computer including the CPU 151or the like.

The CPU 151 is a processor having a function of performing apredetermined operation in accordance with a program stored in the ROM153, the HDD 154, or the like and controlling each component of thecenter server 10. The RAM 152 is formed of a volatile storage medium andprovides a temporal memory region necessary for the operation of the CPU151. The ROM 153 is formed of nonvolatile storage medium and storesnecessary information such as a program used for the operation of thecenter server 10. The HDD 154 is a storage device that is formed of anonvolatile storage medium and stores data necessary for processing, anoperation program of the center server 10, or the like.

The communication I/F 155 is a communication interface based on thespecification such as Ethernet (registered trademark), Wi-Fi (registeredtrademark), 4G, or the like, which is a module used for communicatingwith other apparatuses. The display device 156 is a liquid crystaldisplay, an OLED display, or the like and is used for displaying animage, a text, an interface, or the like. The input device 157 is akeyboard, a pointing device, or the like and is used by the user foroperating the information processing system 1. An example of thepointing device may be a mouse, a trackball, a touchscreen, a pentablet, or the like. The display device 156 and the input device 157 maybe integrally formed as a touchscreen.

Note that, since the functions of a CPU 451, a RAM 452, a ROM 453, anHDD 454, a communication I/F 455, a display device 456, an input device457, and a bus 458 provided in the relay server 40 are the same as thefunctions of the CPU 151, the RAM 152, the ROM 153, the HDD 154, thecommunication I/F 155, the display device 156, the input device 157, andthe bus 158 of the center server 10, the description thereof will beomitted.

Further, the hardware configuration illustrated in FIG. 3 is an example,and other devices than the above may be added, or some of the devicesmay not be provided. Further, some of the devices may be replaced withanother device having the same function. Furthermore, a part of thefunction of the present example embodiment may be provided by anotherdevice via a network, the function of the present example embodiment maybe implemented by being distributed in a plurality of devices. Forexample, the HDD 154 may be replaced with a solid state drive (SSD) witha semiconductor memory or may be replaced with a cloud storage.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of the information processingsystem 1 in the present example embodiment. The center server 10 has afirst storage unit 101, a first image acquisition unit 102, a firstfeature amount calculation unit 103, a first matching unit 104, and acandidate information output unit 105. Further, the relay server 40 hasa candidate information acquisition unit 401, a second storage unit 402,a second image acquisition unit 403, a second feature amount calculationunit 404, a second matching unit 405, a determination unit 406, a gatecontrol unit 407, and a candidate information deletion unit 408.

The CPU 151 of the center server 10 loads a program stored in the ROM153, the HDD 154, or the like to the RAM 152 and executes the program.Thereby, the CPU 151 of the center server 10 implements the functions ofthe first image acquisition unit 102, the first feature amountcalculation unit 103, the first matching unit 104, and the candidateinformation output unit 105. Furthermore, the CPU 151 of the centerserver 10 implements the function of the first storage unit 101 bycontrolling the HDD 154. In the present example embodiment, theregistrant information database 11 corresponds to the first storage unit101.

Similarly, the CPU 451 of the relay server 40 loads a program stored inthe ROM 453, the HDD 454, or the like to the RAM 452 and executes theprogram. Thereby, the CPU 451 of the relay server 40 implements thefunctions of the candidate information acquisition unit 401, the secondimage acquisition unit 403, the second feature amount calculation unit404, the second matching unit 405, the determination unit 406, the gatecontrol unit 407, and the candidate information deletion unit 408. Theprocess performed by each of these units will be described later.Furthermore, the CPU 451 of the relay server 40 implements the functionof the second storage unit 402 by controlling the HDD 454. In thepresent example embodiment, the candidate information database 41corresponds to the second storage unit 402.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating one example of registrant informationstored in the center server 10 (the registrant information database 11)in the present example embodiment. In this example, the data item ofregistrant information includes “registrant ID”, “name”, “address”,“contact information”, “face image”, and “face feature amount”. Forexample, in the registrant information for registrant ID “00001”, thename of a person is “[name NM1]”, the address is “[address A1]”, and thecontact information is “[contact information Cl]”. Further, it isindicated that the face feature amount (biometrics information)calculated from a face image of a person for the registrant ID “00001”is “[face feature amount D1]”.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating one example of candidate informationstored in the relay server 40 (the candidate information database 41) inthe present example embodiment. In this example, the data item ofcandidate information includes “detection SEQ”, “face feature amount”,and “DB registration time”. The detection SEQ indicates the detectionorder in the pre-authentication area. The DB registration date and timeindicates data and time when candidate information received from thecenter server 10 is registered in the candidate information database 41.For example, in the candidate information for the detection SEQ “00101”,it is indicated that the face feature amount is “[face feature amountD5]” and that the information is registered in the candidate informationdatabase 41 when the DB registration time is “[registration time t1]”.

Next, the effect and advantage of the information processing system 1 inthe present example embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.7 . FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram illustrating one example of the processin the information processing system 1.

First, the pre-authentication camera 20 captures a pre-authenticationarea (step S101) and transmits the captured image to the center server10 (step S102). Next, when the first image acquisition unit 102 of thecenter server 10 receives the captured image from the pre-authenticationcamera 20, the first feature amount calculation unit 103 of the centerserver 10 calculates a first feature amount of a detected person (firstperson) included in the received captured image (step S103).

Next, the first matching unit 104 of the center server 10 matches thefirst feature amount of the detected person against feature amounts ofregistrants stored in the registrant information database 11 (stepS104). Next, if a matching score between the first feature amount of thedetected person and each of the feature amounts of registrants isgreater than or equal to a predetermined threshold (determinationreference value), the first matching unit 104 identifies a registranthaving the highest matching score as a candidate out of the relevantpersons (step S105). Note that the number of candidates matched andidentified by the center server 10 is not limited to one. When aplurality of persons have the matching score greater than or equal tothe predetermined threshold (determination reference value), theplurality of persons may be identified.

Next, the candidate information output unit 105 of the center server 10transmits candidate information on the person identified from theregistrants by the matching process to the relay server 40 (step S106).Next, the candidate information acquisition unit 401 of the relay server40 stores the candidate information received from the center server 10in the candidate information database 41 that is the second storage unit402 (step S107).

The primary authentication camera 30 captures a primary authenticationarea (step S108) and transmits the captured image to the relay server 40(step S109). Next, when the second image acquisition unit 403 of therelay server 40 receives the captured image from the primaryauthentication camera 30, the second feature amount calculation unit 404calculates a second feature amount of the detected person (secondperson) included in the received captured image (step S110). The secondmatching unit 405 of the relay server 40 then matches the second featureamount against each of the first feature amounts of candidates (stepS111).

Next, the determination unit 406 of the relay server determines whetheror not the matching score between the second feature amount of thedetected person and each of the first feature amounts of the candidatesis greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold (determinationreference value) (step S112). In this step, if the determination unit406 of the relay server 40 determines that the matching score betweenthe feature amounts is greater than or equal to the threshold (stepS112: YES), the determination unit 406 identifies a candidate having thehighest matching score between the feature out of the relevantcandidates amounts and authenticates the detected person (step S113).That is, it is considered that the two feature amounts are matched.Next, the gate control unit 407 of the relay server 40 transmits gatecontrol information to the gate apparatus 50 (step S114).

The gate apparatus 50 opens the gate based on the gate controlinformation received from the relay server 40 (step S115) and, inresponse, transmits status information indicating the completion of gateopening to the relay server (step S116).

If the determination unit 406 of the relay server 40 determines that thematching score between the feature amounts is less than the threshold(step S112: NO), the determination unit 406 performs determination onthe detected person (second person) as to refuse passage (step S118) andends the process. In this case, a closed state is maintained at the gateapparatus 50.

In step S117, the candidate information deletion unit 408 of the relayserver 40 deletes, from the candidate information database 41 and endsthe process, candidate information related to a person who has passedthrough the gate. Note that, while the above process has been describedbased on the condition where the initial state of the gate apparatus 50is a closed state, the initial state may be an opened state. In such acase, when it is determined that the matching score is less than thethreshold, the gate apparatus 50 is controlled from an open state to aclosed state. Further, if the matching score is less than the threshold,an alert may be output from the gate apparatus 50 or the like by avoice, a light, a text, or the like, for example, instead of controllingthe opening/closing operation of the gate apparatus 50.

When the first person detected from a captured image of apre-authentication area is registered as a registrant, the informationprocessing system 1 in the present example embodiment identifies, from aplurality of registrants, the first person as a candidate for a matchingprocess with a person detected from a captured image of a primaryauthentication area, and the candidate information is transmitted fromthe center server 10 to the relay server 40 and stored therein. Thefinal authentication is then performed by a comparison of the featureamounts between candidates refined in the pre-authentication area and aperson detected from a captured image of the primary authenticationarea. That is, since the final authentication is performed after thenumber of persons belonging to the population N of 1-to-N facerecognition is significantly reduced, the authentication accuracy andthe authentication speed in the final authentication can besignificantly improved.

Further, the information processing system 1 in the present exampleembodiment is configured so that information on the candidate who hascompleted primary authentication is deleted immediately after thepassage of the gate. Thus, it is possible to prevent unnecessarycandidate information from being accumulated in the candidateinformation database 41 of the relay server 40. As a result, it ispossible to prevent a reduction in the authentication accuracy and theauthentication speed in 1-to-N face recognition.

Second Example Embodiment

An information processing system 2 in a second example embodiment willbe described below. Note that references common to references providedin the drawings of the first example embodiment denote the same object.Thus, the description of a part common to the first example embodimentwill be omitted, and a different part will be described in detail.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example of theinformation processing system 2 in the present example embodiment. Asillustrated in FIG. 8 , the relay server 40 is connected to the externalserver via the network NW. The external server 60 is a server used toprovide a service by an enterprise that is different from an enterprisethat manages the center server 10, for example, and has a memberinformation database 61.

FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram of the information processingsystem 2 in the present example embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 9 ,the relay server 40 of the present example embodiment is different fromthe first example embodiment in that the balance information acquisitionunit 409 that acquires balance information on a member from the externalserver 60 is further provided.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating one example of member informationstored in the external server 60 in the present example embodiment.Here, as examples of data items of member information, “member ID”,“name”, “address”, “contact information”, “balance information”, and“automatic charge” are listed. The member ID is a unique ID for eachmember. The balance information indicates a balance of electronic moneythat can be used by a member for various services. The automatic chargeindicates whether or not a service that automatically adds a set amountwhen the balance becomes below a certain amount is set. Note that, whilethe member ID is an ID corresponding to the registrant ID illustrated inFIG. 5 in the present example embodiment, it may be another IDassociated with a registrant ID.

Next, the effect and advantage of the information processing system 2 inthe present example embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.11 . FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating one example of theprocess in the information processing system 2.

First, the pre-authentication camera 20 captures the pre-authenticationarea (step S201) and transmits the captured image to the center server10 (step S202). Next, when the first image acquisition unit 102 of thecenter server 10 receives the captured image from the pre-authenticationcamera 20, the first feature amount calculation unit 103 calculates afirst feature amount of a detected person (first person) included in thereceived captured image (step S203).

Next, the first matching unit 104 of the center server 10 matches thefirst feature amount against feature amounts of registrants stored inthe registrant information database 11 (step S204). Next, if a matchingscore between the first feature amount of the detected person and eachof the feature amounts of registrants is greater than or equal to apredetermined threshold (determination reference value), the firstmatching unit 104 identifies a person having the highest matching scoreas a candidate out of the relevant candidates (step S205). Note that thenumber of candidates matched and identified by the center server 10 isnot limited to one. When a plurality of persons have the matching scoregreater than or equal to the predetermined threshold (determinationreference value), the plurality of persons may be identified.

Next, the candidate information output unit 105 of the center server 10transmits candidate information on the candidate identified from theregistrants by the matching process to the relay server 40 (step S206).Next, the candidate information acquisition unit 401 of the relay server40 stores the candidate information received from the center server 10in the candidate information database 41 that is the second storage unit402 (step S207).

Next, the balance information acquisition unit 409 of the relay server40 transmits member authentication information on the identifiedcandidates to the external server 60 (step S208). The memberauthentication information may be acquired from the center server 10together with the candidate information, for example. The externalserver 60 acquires balance information on the candidates from the memberinformation database 61 based on the member authentication informationreceived from the relay server 40 and transmits the acquired balanceinformation back to the relay server 40 (step S209).

The primary authentication camera 30 captures a primary authenticationarea (step S210) and transmits the captured image to the relay server 40(step S211). Next, when the second image acquisition unit 403 of therelay server 40 receives the captured image from the primaryauthentication camera 30, the second feature amount calculation unit 404calculates a second feature amount of the detected person (secondperson) included in the received captured image (step S212). The secondmatching unit 405 of the relay server 40 then matches the second featureamount against each of the first feature amounts of candidates (stepS213).

Next, the determination unit 406 of the relay server determines whetheror not the matching score between the second feature amount of thedetected person and each of the first feature amounts of the candidatesis greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold (determinationreference value) (step S214). In this step, if the determination unit406 of the relay server 40 determines that the matching score betweenthe feature amounts is greater than or equal to the threshold (stepS214: YES), the determination unit 406 identifies a candidate having thehighest matching score between the feature amounts out of the relevantcandidates and authenticates the detected person (step S215). Theprocess then proceeds to step S216.

If the determination unit 406 of the relay server 40 determines that thematching score between the feature amounts is less than the threshold(step S214: NO), the determination unit 406 performs determination onthe second person as to refuse passage (step S223) and ends the process.

In step S216, the determination unit 406 of the relay server 40references the balance information on the first person and determineswhether or not the balance is greater than or equal to a billing amount.In this step, if the determination unit 406 of the relay server 40determines that the balance is greater than or equal to the billingamount (step S216: YES), the relay server 40 transmits billinginformation to the external server 60 (step S217). In response to thisbilling information, the external server updates the balance informationincluded in the member information in the member information database 61(step S218).

Further, in parallel to the process of step S217, the gate control unit407 of the relay server 40 transmits gate control information to thegate apparatus 50 (step S219).

The gate apparatus 50 opens the gate based on the gate controlinformation received from the relay server 40 (step S220) and, inresponse, transmits status information indicating the completion of gateopening to the relay server (step S221).

If the determination unit 406 of the relay server 40 determines that thebalance is less than the billing amount (step S216: NO), thedetermination unit 406 performs determination on the second person as torefuse passage (step S223) and ends the process. In this case, a closedstate is maintained at the gate apparatus 50.

In step S222, the candidate information deletion unit 408 of the relayserver 40 deletes candidate information related to a person who haspassed through the gate from the candidate information database 41 andends the process. Note that, while a process of comparing a balance witha billing amount (step S216) is performed after the process ofdetermining a matching score between the first feature amount and thesecond feature amount (step S214) in the sequence diagram of FIG. 11 ,the order of the processes is not limited thereto. For example, theprocess of comparing a balance with a billing amount of a registrant(candidate) (step S216) may be performed immediately after the relayserver 40 receives balance information from the external server 60. Insuch a case, when the relay server 40 determines that the balance isless than the billing amount, it is preferable to further perform aprocess to delete the candidate information corresponding to thecandidate with an insufficient balance from the candidate informationdatabase 41. Once the corresponding candidate information is deletedfrom the relay server 40, the relay server 40 determines that there isno candidate information in which the matching score is greater than orequal to a threshold in the subsequent determination process(corresponding to step S214). Thus, in the same manner as FIG. 11 , therelay server 40 is able to refuse passage by a registrant with aninsufficient balance.

The information processing system 2 in the present example embodiment isconfigured to determine whether or not to permit passage to therestricted area by taking into consideration of not only a matchingresult of face feature amounts but also balance information on acandidate acquired from the affiliated external server 60 and thus candetermine a person who is allowed to use a service. Further, since therelay server 40 has balance information on a candidate before capturingthe candidate by the primary authentication camera 30 installed near thegate apparatus 50, the relay server 40 can immediately open the gatewhen determining that the matching score between the second featureamount of the captured image captured by the primary authenticationcamera 30 and the first feature amount is greater than or equal to athreshold.

Third Example Embodiment

An information processing system 3 in a third example embodiment will bedescribed below. Note that references common to references provided inthe drawings of the first example embodiment denote the same object.Thus, the description of a part common to the first example embodimentwill be omitted, and a different part will be described in detail.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example ofthe information processing system 3 in the present example embodiment.As illustrated in FIG. 12 , the present example embodiment is differentfrom the first example embodiment in that the pre-authentication areasare set in two regions and pre-authentication cameras 20A and 20B areinstalled in association with each area of pre-authentication areas Aand B. Note that the pre-authentication areas may be set to three ormore regions.

Next, the effect and advantage of the information processing system 3 inthe present example embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.13 . FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the process inthe relay server 40.

First, once the candidate information acquisition unit 401 of the relayserver 40 receives candidate information from the center server 10 (stepS301), the candidate information acquisition unit 401 references thecandidate information database 41 (the second storage unit 402) anddetermines whether or not the first feature amount included in thecandidate information is a registered feature amount (step S302).

In this step, if the candidate information acquisition unit 401 of therelay server 40 determines that the first feature amount is a registeredfeature amount (step S302: YES), the candidate information deletion unit408 of the relay server 40 deletes the registered candidate informationwhose registration date and time is old (step S303). The process thenproceeds to step S304. On the other hand, if the candidate informationacquisition unit 401 of the relay server 40 determines that the firstfeature amount is a non-registered feature amount (step S302: NO), theprocess proceeds to step S304.

In step S304, the candidate information acquisition unit 401 registersthe candidate information received in step S301 in the candidateinformation database 41 and ends the process. Note that, whileduplication is determined in accordance with whether or not a featureamount has been registered in the determination process in step S302described above, the determination method is not limited thereto. Forexample, when a registrant ID is associated with a feature amount andstored in the candidate information database 41, it is possible todetect and delete duplicated candidate information based on theregistrant ID.

In the information processing system 3 in the present exampleembodiment, a person is detected from captured images in the pluralityof pre-authentication areas A and B and transmitted from the centerserver 10 to the relay server 40 as candidate information, respectively.In such a case, the candidate information may be transmitted multipletimes for the same person. However, since control is performed so thatduplicated identical feature amounts are not present in the candidateinformation database 41, it is possible to prevent unnecessary candidateinformation from being accumulated. As a result, it is possible toprevent a reduction in authentication accuracy and authentication speedin 1-to-N face recognition.

Fourth Example Embodiment

An information processing system 4 in a fourth example embodiment willbe described below. Note that references common to references providedin the drawings of the first example embodiment denote the same object.Thus, the description of a part common to the first example embodimentwill be omitted, and a different part will be described in detail.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example ofthe information processing system 4 in the present example embodiment.As illustrated in FIG. 14 , the information processing system 4 isdifferent from that of the first example embodiment in that a deletioncamera 70 is installed independently of the pre-authentication camera 20and the primary authentication camera 30 within a base. The deletioncamera 70 is an image capture device (third camera) that captures apredetermined monitoring area.

While the case where the monitoring area is a different region from thepre-authentication area is illustrated as an example in FIG. 14 , themonitoring area may be set to the same region as the pre-authenticationarea. That is, the deletion camera 70 (A) may be installed at a positionmore distant than the pre-authentication area from the primaryauthentication area as illustrated in FIG. 14 or (B) may be installed soas to face the pre-authentication camera 20 about the primaryauthentication area (primary authentication camera 30) as the center,for example. Thereby, based on the orientation of a face or a travelingdirection of a person, it can be easily determined whether the person ismoving toward the restricted area or is moving away from the restrictedarea. The relay server 40 (the candidate information deletion unit 408)then deletes candidate information from the candidate informationdatabase 41 for a person moving away from the restricted area.

Next, the effect and advantage of the information processing system 4 inthe present example embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.15 . FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the process inthe relay server 40 in the present example embodiment.

First, in response to receiving a captured image (third image) of amonitoring area from the deletion camera 70 (step S401), the relayserver 40 calculates a third feature amount of a detected person (thirdperson) included in the captured image (step S402). Next, the relayserver 40 matches the calculated third feature amount against the firstfeature amount of a candidate (step S403).

Next, the relay server 40 references the candidate information database41 and determines whether or not the third feature amount is aregistered feature amount (step S404). In this step, if the relay server40 determines that the third feature amount is a registered featureamount (step S404: YES), the candidate information deletion unit 408 ofthe relay server 40 deletes the registered candidate information (stepS405) and ends the process.

On the other hand, if the relay server 40 determines that the thirdfeature amount is a non-registered feature amount (step S404: NO), theprocess ends. No registration of candidate information is performed froma captured image in the monitoring area. However, when the third featureamount is a non-registered feature amount, the captured image or thethird feature amount may be transmitted to the center server 10 as withthe first feature amount.

When candidate information on a person included in a captured image of apredetermined monitoring area has been registered, the informationprocessing system 4 in the present example embodiment can delete thecandidate information. Thereby, since candidate information on personswho are out of consideration in the primary authentication can beappropriately arranged, it is possible to prevent unnecessary candidateinformation from being accumulated. As a result, it is possible toprevent a reduction in authentication accuracy and authentication speedin 1-to-N face recognition.

Fifth Example Embodiment

An information processing system 5 in a fifth example embodiment will bedescribed below. Note that references common to references provided inthe drawings of the first example embodiment denote the same object.Thus, the description of a part common to the first example embodimentwill be omitted, and a different part will be described in detail.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example ofthe information processing system in the present example embodiment. Asillustrated in FIG. 16 , the information processing system 5 isdifferent from the first example embodiment in that, instead of thecenter server 10 and the relay server 40, a management server 80 inwhich the center server 10 and the relay server 40 are integrated isprovided.

The management server 80 has the same function as the center server 10and the relay server 40 illustrated in FIG. 4 . Specifically, themanagement server 80 has both the registrant information database 11(the first storage unit 101) and the candidate information database 41(the second storage unit 402). Note that the function of transmittingand receiving information between servers is unnecessary due to theintegration.

Next, the effect and advantage of the information processing system 5 inthe present example embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.17 . FIG. 17 is a sequence diagram illustrating one example of theprocess in the information processing system 5 in the present exampleembodiment.

First, the pre-authentication camera 20 captures the pre-authenticationarea (step S501) and transmits the captured image (first image) to themanagement server 80 (step S502). Next, the management server 80calculates the first feature amount of a detected person (first person)included in a captured image received from the pre-authentication camera20 (step S503).

Next, the management server 80 matches the first feature amount of thedetected person against feature amounts of registrants stored in theregistrant information database 11 (step S504). Next, the managementserver 80 identifies, from the registrants having a matching scorebetween feature amounts that is greater than or equal to a threshold, aregistrant having the highest matching score between the feature amountsas a candidate (step S505). Note that the number of candidates matchedand identified by the management server 80 is not limited to one. When aplurality of persons have the matching score greater than or equal tothe predetermined threshold (determination reference value), theplurality of persons may be identified.

Next, the management server 80 stores the candidate information on theperson identified from the registrants by the matching process in thecandidate information database 41 (step S506).

The primary authentication camera 30 captures a primary authenticationarea (step S507) and transmits the captured image (second image) to themanagement server 80 (step S508). Next, when the management server 80calculates a second feature amount of the detected person (secondperson) included in the captured image received from the primaryauthentication camera 30 (step S509), the management server 80 matchesthe second feature amount against each of the first feature amounts ofcandidates (step S510).

Next, the management server 80 determines whether or not the matchingscore between the second feature amount of the detected person and eachof the first feature amounts of the candidates is greater than or equalto a predetermined threshold (determination reference value) (stepS511). In this step, if the management server 80 determines that thematching score between the feature amounts is greater than or equal tothe threshold (step S511: YES), the management server 80 identifies acandidate having the highest matching score out of the relevantregistrants and authenticates the detected person (step S512). Themanagement server 80 then transmits gate control information to the gateapparatus 50 (step S513).

The gate apparatus 50 opens the gate based on the gate controlinformation received from the management server 80 (step S514) and, inresponse, transmits status information indicating the completion of gateopening to the management server 80 (step S515). The process thenproceeds to step S516.

If the management server 80 determines that the matching score is lessthan the predetermined threshold (step S511: NO), the management server80 performs determination on the second person as to refuse passage(step S517) and ends the process.

In step S516, the management server 80 deletes, from the candidateinformation database 41, candidate information related to a person whohas passed through the gate and ends the process.

The information processing system 5 in the present example embodiment isconfigured such that, unlike the first example embodiment describedabove, the management server 80 has the functions of a plurality ofservers and thus has an advantage that transmission and reception ofdata between servers are no longer necessary in addition to theadvantages of the first example embodiment described above.

Sixth Example Embodiment

An information processing system 6 in a sixth example embodiment will bedescribed below. Note that references common to references provided inthe drawings of the second example embodiment denote the same object.Thus, the description of a part common to the second example embodimentwill be omitted, and a different part will be described in detail.

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating the entire configuration example ofthe information processing system 6 in the present example embodiment.As illustrated in FIG. 18 , the center server 10 is different from thatof the second example embodiment in that the member information database61 is provided in addition to the registrant information database 11.That is, the center server 10 of the present example embodiment furtherhas the function of the external server 60 of the second exampleembodiment. Note that, in the present example embodiment, the memberinformation database 61 is not required to have all the data itemsillustrated in FIG. 10 , and the data item (“name”, “address”, or thelike) duplicated with the registrant information database 11 may beomitted. Further, the registrant information database 11 and the memberinformation database 61 may be aggregated into a single database.

Next, the effect and advantage of the information processing system 6 inthe present example embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.19 . FIG. 19 is a sequence diagram illustrating one example of theprocess in the information processing system 6.

First, the pre-authentication camera 20 captures a pre-authenticationarea (step S601) and transmits the captured image to the center server10 (step S602). Next, when the first image acquisition unit 102 of thecenter server 10 receives the captured image from the pre-authenticationcamera 20, the first feature amount calculation unit 103 calculates afirst feature amount of a detected person (first person) included in thereceived captured image (step S603).

Next, the first matching unit 104 of the center server 10 matches thefirst feature amount of the detected person against feature amounts ofregistrants stored in the registrant information database 11 (stepS604). If a matching score between the first feature amount of thedetected person and each of the feature amounts of registrants isgreater than or equal to a predetermined threshold (determinationreference value), the first matching unit 104 identifies, from theregistrants, a registrant having the highest matching score as acandidate (step S605). Note that the number of candidates matched andidentified by the center server 10 is not limited to one. When aplurality of persons have the matching score greater than or equal tothe predetermined threshold (determination reference value), theplurality of persons may be identified.

Next, the candidate information output unit 105 of the center server 10transmits the feature amount of candidates identified from theregistrants by the matching process (candidate information) and balanceinformation on the candidates to the relay server 40 (step S606). Thebalance information on the candidate can be acquired from memberinformation having a member ID that matches a registrant ID of acandidate by searching the member information database 61 by using theregistrant ID as a search key. Next, the candidate informationacquisition unit 401 of the relay server 40 stores the candidateinformation and the balance information received from the center server10 in the candidate information database 41 that is the second storageunit 402 (step S607).

The primary authentication camera 30 captures a primary authenticationarea (step S608) and transmits the captured image to the relay server 40(step S609). Next, when the second image acquisition unit 403 of therelay server 40 receives the captured image from the primaryauthentication camera 30, the second feature amount calculation unit 404calculates a second feature amount of the detected person (secondperson) included in the received captured image (step S610). The secondmatching unit 405 of the relay server 40 then matches the second featureamount against each of the first feature amounts of candidates (stepS611).

Next, the determination unit 406 of the relay server determines whetheror not the matching score between the second feature amount of thedetected person and each of the first feature amounts of the candidatesis greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold (determinationreference value) (step S612). In this step, if the determination unit406 of the relay server 40 determines that the matching score betweenthe feature amounts is greater than or equal to the threshold (stepS612: YES), the determination unit 406 identifies a candidate having thehighest matching score between the feature amounts out of the relevantpersons and authenticates the detected person (step S613). The processthen proceeds to step S614.

If the determination unit 406 of the relay server 40 determines that thematching score between the feature amounts is less than the threshold(step S612: NO), the determination unit 406 performs determination onthe second person as to refuse passage (step S621) and ends the process.

In step S614, the determination unit 406 of the relay server 40references the balance information on the first person stored in thecandidate information database 41 and determines whether or not thebalance is greater than or equal to a billing amount. In this step, ifthe determination unit 406 of the relay server 40 determines that thebalance is greater than or equal to the billing amount (step S614: YES),the gate control unit 407 of the relay server 40 transmits gate controlinformation to the gate apparatus 50 (step S615).

The gate apparatus 50 opens the gate based on the gate controlinformation received from the relay server 40 (step S616) and, inresponse, transmits status information indicating the completion of gateopening to the relay server 40 (step S617).

Further, in parallel to the process of steps S615 to S617, the relayserver 40 transmits billing information to the center server 10 (stepS618). In response to this billing information, the center server 10updates the balance information included in the member information inthe member information database 61 (step S619).

If the determination unit 406 of the relay server 40 determines that thebalance is less than the billing amount (step S614: NO), thedetermination unit 406 performs determination on the second person as torefuse passage (step S621) and ends the process. In this case, a closedstate (initial state) is maintained at the gate apparatus 50.

In step S620, the candidate information deletion unit 408 of the relayserver 40 deletes, from the candidate information database 41, candidateinformation related to a person who has passed through the gate and endsthe process. Note that, while the process of comparing a balance with abilling amount (step S614) is performed after the process of determininga matching score between the first feature amount and the second featureamount (step S612) in the sequence diagram of FIG. 19 , the order of theprocesses is not limited thereto. For example, the process of comparinga balance with a billing amount of a registrant (candidate) (step S614)may be performed immediately after the relay server 40 stores balanceinformation received from the center server 10 in the candidateinformation database 41. In such a case, when the relay server 40determines that the balance is less than the billing amount, it ispreferable to further perform a process to delete, from the candidateinformation database 41, the candidate information corresponding to thecandidate with an insufficient balance. Once the corresponding candidateinformation is deleted from the relay server 40, the relay server 40determines that there is no candidate information in which the matchingscore is greater than or equal to a threshold in the subsequentdetermination process (corresponding to step S612). Thus, in the samemanner as FIG. 19 , the relay server 40 is able to refuse passage by aregistrant with an insufficient balance.

The information processing system 6 in the present example embodiment isconfigured to determine whether or not to permit passage to therestricted area by taking into consideration of not only a matchingresult of face feature amounts but also balance information on acandidate and thus can determine a person who is allowed to use aservice. Further, since the relay server 40 has balance information on acandidate before capturing the candidate by the primary authenticationcamera 30 installed near the gate apparatus 50, the relay server 40 canimmediately open the gate when determining that the matching scorebetween the second feature amount of the captured image captured by theprimary authentication camera 30 and the first feature amount is greaterthan or equal to a threshold. Furthermore, the information processingsystem 6 in the present example embodiment is configured such that,unlike the second example embodiment described above, the center server10 has both the registrant information database 11 and the memberinformation database 61 and thus has also an advantage that it ispossible to acquire balance information on a registrant withoutperforming an authentication process for the external server.

Seventh Example Embodiment

FIG. 20 is a functional block diagram of an information processingapparatus 100 in a seventh example embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 20, the information processing apparatus 100 has an acquisition unit 100Aand a matching unit 100B. The acquisition unit 100A acquires, from aregistered biometrics information group including biometrics informationon a plurality of registrants, a first biometrics information groupincluding biometrics information on a first person detected from a firstimage captured in a first area. The matching unit 100B matchesbiometrics information on a second person detected from a second imagecaptured in a second area that is different from the first area againstthe biometrics information included in the first biometrics informationgroup. The information processing apparatus 100 in the present exampleembodiment can improve the authentication accuracy and theauthentication speed in face recognition.

Eighth Example Embodiment

FIG. 21 is a functional block diagram of an information processingapparatus 200 in an eighth example embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 21, the information processing apparatus 200 has a storage unit 200A, afirst matching unit 200B, an identifying unit 200C, and a secondmatching unit 200D. The storage unit 200A stores a registered biometricsinformation group including biometrics information on a plurality ofregistrants. The first matching unit 200B matches biometrics informationon a first person detected from a first image captured in a first areaagainst biometrics information included in the registered biometricsinformation group. The identifying unit 200C identifies a firstbiometrics information group including biometrics information on thefirst person from the registered biometrics information group based on amatching result in the first matching unit 200B. The second matchingunit 200D matches biometrics information on a second person detectedfrom a second image captured in a second area that is different from thefirst area against biometrics information included in the firstbiometrics information group. The information processing apparatus 200in the present example embodiment can improve the authenticationaccuracy and the authentication speed in face recognition.

Ninth Example Embodiment

FIG. 22 is a functional block diagram of an information processingapparatus 300 in a ninth example embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 22 ,the information processing apparatus 300 has a storage unit 300A, amatching unit 300B, an identifying unit 300C, and an output unit 300D.The storage unit 300A stores a registered biometrics information groupincluding biometrics information on a plurality of registrants. Thematching unit 300B matches biometrics information on a first persondetected from a first image captured in a first area against biometricsinformation included in the registered biometrics information group. Theidentifying unit 300C identifies a first biometrics information groupincluding biometrics information on the first person from the registeredbiometrics information group based on a matching result in the matchingunit 300B. The output unit 300D outputs the first biometrics informationgroup used for a matching operation of biometrics information on asecond person detected in a second area that is different from the firstarea. The information processing apparatus 300 in the present exampleembodiment can improve the authentication accuracy and theauthentication speed in face recognition.

Tenth Example Embodiment

FIG. 23 is a functional block diagram of an information processingsystem 400 in a tenth example embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 23 ,the information processing system 400 has a first camera 400A, a secondcamera 400B, a first server 400C, and a second server 400D. The firstcamera 400A captures a first area to generate a first image. The secondcamera 400B captures a second area that is different from the first areato generate a second image. The first server 400C matches biometricsinformation on a first person detected from the first image against aregistered biometrics information group including biometrics informationon a plurality of registrants and identifies a first biometricsinformation group including biometrics information on the first personfrom the registered biometrics information group. The second server 400Dmatches biometrics information on a second person detected from thesecond image against biometrics information included in the firstbiometrics information group. The information processing system 400 inthe present example embodiment can improve the authentication accuracyand the authentication speed in face recognition.

Modified Example Embodiments

The present invention can be appropriately changed within the scope notdeparting from the spirit of the present invention without being limitedto the example embodiments described above.

While the case where it is determined whether or not a detected personis authorized for passage based on a matching result of feature amountshas been described in the above first example embodiment, a result ofdetermination obtained by a predetermined authentication card (forexample, a security card, a transportation IC card, or the like) may beused together with the matching result of feature amounts.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the process in therelay server 40 in the modified example embodiment. This process isperformed between step S109 and step S115 of FIG. 7 .

First, the relay server 40 receives a captured image of a primaryauthentication area (step S701) and, in response, calculates a secondfeature amount of a detected person included in the captured image (stepS702). Next, the relay server 40 matches the calculated second featureamount against a first feature amount of a candidate (step S703).

Next, the relay server 40 determines whether or not a matching scorebetween the second feature amount of the detected person and the firstfeature amount of the candidate is greater than or equal to apredetermined threshold (determination reference value) (step S704). Inthis step, if the relay server 40 determines that the matching score isgreater than or equal to the threshold (step S704: YES), the relayserver 40 identifies a person having the highest matching score betweenthe feature amounts out of the relevant candidates (step S705). Thereby,the identified candidate (registrant) and the detected person areconsidered as the identical person. The process then proceeds to stepS709. On the other hand, if the relay server 40 determines that thematching score is less than the threshold (step S704: NO), the processproceeds to step S706.

In step S706, the relay server 40 determines whether or not anauthentication card is presented from the detected person in the primaryauthentication area (hereafter, referred to as “authenticationsubject”). In this step, if the relay server 40 determines that anauthentication card is presented (step S706: YES), the process proceedsto step S707. On the other hand, if the relay server 40 determines thatno authentication card is presented (step S706: NO), the processproceeds to step S710.

In step S707, the relay server 40 inquires of the center server 10whether or not the authentication subject is a registrant based onauthentication information read from the authentication card by a cardreader device (not illustrated). Next, the relay server 40 determineswhether or not the authentication subject is a registrant based onresponse information from the center server 10 (step S708). In thisstep, if the relay server 40 determines that the authentication subjectis a registrant (step S708: YES), the process proceeds to step S709. Onthe other hand, if the relay server 40 determines that theauthentication subject is not a registrant (step S708: NO), the processproceeds to step S710.

In step S709, when the relay server 40 transmits gate controlinformation of a gate open instruction to the gate apparatus 50, theprocess proceeds to step S115. On the other hand, in step S710, when therelay server 40 transmits gate control information of a gate closureinstruction to the gate apparatus 50, the process ends. In such a way,by combining authentication using face recognition and authenticationusing an authentication card, it is also possible to support aregistrant whose face image is not registered.

Further, while the management server 80 has both the registrantinformation database 11 (the first storage unit 101) and the candidateinformation database 41 (the second storage unit 402) in the fifthexample embodiment described above, these databases may be aggregatedinto a single database. FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating one example ofregistrant information stored in the management server 80 in themodified example embodiment. In this example, “candidate flag” is addedto the data item of the registrant information illustrated in FIG. 5 .The candidate flag has the initial value “0” and is updated to “1” whena registrant is identified as a candidate based on a matching result inthe pre-authentication area. Then, upon the completion of the matchingoperation, the candidate flag returns to the initial value “0”. That is,candidate information is defined in the registrant information. Thus, bymatching a second feature amount of a detected person included in acaptured image of the primary authentication area against a featureamount (first feature amount) of a registrant whose candidate flag is“1”, it is possible to obtain the same advantage as that in the fifthexample embodiment described above.

Further, it has been described in the above example embodiments thatcandidate information is deleted in accordance with three types ofdeletion conditions, namely, (A) when an authentication subject haspassed through the gate apparatus 50, (B) when candidate informationrelated to a registered feature amount is again received, and (C) whencandidate information on a person included in a captured image of amonitoring area has been registered, but the deletion condition is notlimited thereto. For example, candidate information may be deleted basedon whether or not elapsed time from registration date and time ofcandidate information (DB registration time) to the current time reachespredetermined time. In such a case, it is possible to prevent candidateinformation which is no longer necessary due to time elapsing fromremaining in the candidate information database 41.

Further, in each of the example embodiments described above, the casewhere the pre-authentication camera 20 and the primary authenticationcamera 30 have only the function of transmitting a captured image hasbeen described. However, the pre-authentication camera 20 and theprimary authentication camera 30 may further have a function ofdetecting a person from a captured image and calculating andtransmitting the feature amount thereof. In such a case, it is possibleto require only the transmission of the feature amount instead of acaptured image to the center server 10 or the relay server 40.

Further, while the case where the center server 10 transmits only theface feature amount to the relay server 40 has been described in each ofthe above example embodiments, a face image of an identified candidatemay be transmitted, or an ID of a candidate may be transmitted togetherwith a feature amount or a face image. When a face image is transmitted,it is also possible to create passage history information including aface image of a matched candidate and a face image of the second person.Further, when an ID of a candidate (registrant ID) is transmittedtogether and held on the relay server 40 side with a feature amount andthe ID being associated with each other, it is possible to extract anddelete duplicated candidate information based not only on a matchingoperation of feature amounts but also on a matching result of the IDs.

Further, while the case where a single relay server 40 is installed to asingle base has been described in the above first to fourth exampleembodiments, a plurality of relay servers 40 may be installed to asingle base. For example, in a facility in which the number of users isextremely large, installation of the plurality of relay servers 40provides an advantage that a matching process may be performed in adistributed manner. In such a case, it is preferable to control dataregistration so that duplicated candidate information is not heldbetween the plurality of relay servers 40.

Further, while the case where a threshold used at a matching operationin the pre-authentication area and a threshold used at a matchingoperation in the primary authentication area are the same value has beendescribed in each of the above example embodiments, the threshold may bedifferent for the pre-authentication area and the primary authenticationarea. For example, a threshold used at a matching operation in thepre-authentication area may be set to be lower than a threshold used ata matching operation in the primary authentication area. This has anadvantage that incomplete extraction of candidates in thepre-authentication area can be prevented. In contrast, a threshold usedat a matching operation in the pre-authentication area may be set to behigher than a threshold used at a matching operation in the primaryauthentication area. Thereby, pre-authentication can be performed undera stricter condition. Further, when a plurality of pre-authenticationareas are set, thresholds used at matching operations in respectivepre-authentication areas may be set such that a higher threshold is setfor one closer to the primary authentication area (the primaryauthentication camera 30). Thereby, it is possible to narrow stepwiseauthentication subjects (candidates) in the primary authentication areain accordance with the distance from each of the pre-authenticationareas to the primary authentication area.

Furthermore, in each of the above example embodiments, the case wherecandidate information (first feature amount) on the same person is notduplicated in registration even when the same person is detectedmultiple times in the pre-authentication area and the number ofdetection times is not considered has been described. However, when aplurality of pre-authentication cameras 20 are installed, the sameperson may be captured multiple times. Thus, when the same person iscaptured multiple times, the threshold used at a matching operation inthe primary authentication area may be changed (increased or decreased)in accordance with the number of detection times. Thereby, for example,by increasing a threshold in the primary authentication area to behigher than that in a normal state for a person detected for apredetermined number of times or more in the pre-authentication area, itis possible to authenticate the person strictly as a suspicious person.In contrast, authentication may be performed by decreasing a thresholdin the primary authentication area to be lower than that in a normalstate.

The scope of each of the example embodiments further includes aprocessing method that stores, in a storage medium, a program thatcauses the configuration of each of the example embodiments to operateso as to implement the function of each of the example embodimentsdescribed above, reads the program stored in the storage medium as acode, and executes the program in a computer. That is, the scope of eachof the example embodiments also includes a computer readable storagemedium. Further, each of the example embodiments includes not only thestorage medium in which the program described above is stored but alsothe program itself. Further, one or two or more components included inthe example embodiments described above may be a circuit such as anASIC, an FPGA, or the like configured to implement the function of eachcomponent.

As the storage medium, for example, a floppy (registered trademark)disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CompactDisk (CD)-ROM, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, or a ROM canbe used. Further, the scope of each of the example embodiments includesan example that operates on Operating System (OS) to perform a processin cooperation with another software or a function of an add-in boardwithout being limited to an example that performs a process by anindividual program stored in the storage medium.

Further, a service implemented by the function of each of the exampleembodiments described above may be provided to a user in a form ofSoftware as a Service (SaaS).

Note that all the example embodiments described above are mere examplesof embodiment in implementing the present invention, and the technicalscope of the present invention should not be construed in a limitingsense by these example embodiments. That is, the present invention canbe implemented in various forms without departing from the technicalconcept thereof or the primary feature thereof.

The whole or part of the example embodiments disclosed above can bedescribed as, but not limited to, the following supplementary notes.

(Supplementary Note 1)

An information processing apparatus comprising:

-   -   an acquisition unit that acquires a first biometrics information        group including biometrics information on a first person        detected from a first image captured in a first area from a        registered biometrics information group including biometrics        information on a plurality of registrants; and    -   a matching unit that matches biometrics information on a second        person detected from a second image captured in a second area        that is different from the first area against biometrics        information included in the first biometrics information group.

(Supplementary Note 2)

The information processing apparatus according to supplementary note 1further comprising a detection unit that detects biometrics informationon the second person from the second image.

(Supplementary Note 3)

The information processing apparatus according to supplementary note 1or 2 further comprising a determination unit that determines whether ornot the second person is authorized for passage from the second area toa restricted area based on a matching result obtained by the matchingunit.

(Supplementary Note 4)

The information processing apparatus according to supplementary note 3further comprising a control unit that controls opening or closing of adoor of a passage restriction apparatus installed between the restrictedarea and the second area based on whether or not the second person isauthorized for the passage.

(Supplementary Note 5)

The information processing apparatus according to supplementary note 3or 4 further comprising a balance information acquisition unit thatacquires balance information on the first person, wherein thedetermination unit determines whether or not the second person isauthorized for the passage to the restricted area based on the matchingresult and the balance information.

(Supplementary Note 6)

The information processing apparatus according to any one ofsupplementary notes 1 to 5 further comprising:

-   -   a storage unit that stores the acquired first biometrics        information group; and    -   a deletion unit that deletes, from the first biometrics        information group, biometrics information on the first person        that matches a predetermined condition.

(Supplementary Note 7)

The information processing apparatus according to supplementary note 6,wherein the deletion unit deletes biometrics information on the firstperson for which elapsed time from time of registration to the storageunit reaches predetermined time.

(Supplementary Note 8)

The information processing apparatus according to supplementary note 6or 7, wherein the deletion unit deletes biometrics information on thefirst person from the storage unit when biometrics information on athird person detected from a third image captured in a predeterminedmonitoring area matches biometrics information on the first person.

(Supplementary Note 9)

The information processing apparatus according to any one ofsupplementary notes 6 to 8, wherein when there are multiple pieces ofbiometrics information for the first person in the storage unit, thedeletion unit deletes biometrics information having earlier time ofregistration to the storage unit.

(Supplementary Note 10)

An information processing apparatus comprising:

-   -   a storage unit that stores a registered biometrics information        group including biometrics information on a plurality of        registrants;    -   a first matching unit that matches biometrics information on a        first person detected from a first image captured in a first        area against biometrics information included in the registered        biometrics information group;    -   an identifying unit that identifies a first biometrics        information group including biometrics information on the first        person from the registered biometrics information group based on        a matching result in the first matching unit; and    -   a second matching unit that matches biometrics information on a        second person detected from a second image captured in a second        area that is different from the first area against biometrics        information included in the first biometrics information group.

(Supplementary Note 11)

An information processing apparatus comprising: a storage unit thatstores a registered biometrics information group including biometricsinformation on a plurality of registrants;

-   -   a matching unit that matches biometrics information on a first        person detected from a first image captured in a first area        against biometrics information included in the registered        biometrics information group;    -   an identifying unit that identifies a first biometrics        information group including biometrics information on the first        person from the registered biometrics information group based on        a matching result in the matching unit; and    -   an output unit that outputs the first biometrics information        group used for a matching operation of biometrics information on        a second person detected in a second area that is different from        the first area.

(Supplementary Note 12)

An information processing system comprising:

-   -   a first camera that captures a first area to generate a first        image;    -   a second camera that captures a second area that is different        from the first area to generate a second image;    -   a first server that matches biometrics information on a first        person detected from the first image against a registered        biometrics information group including biometrics information on        a plurality of registrants and identifies a first biometrics        information group including biometrics information on the first        person from the registered biometrics information group; and    -   a second server that matches biometrics information on a second        person detected from the second image against biometrics        information included in the first biometrics information group.

(Supplementary Note 13)

The information processing system according to supplementary note 12,wherein a reference value used for determining a matching in a matchingoperation of biometrics information on the first person againstbiometrics information on the registrants in the first server is setlower than a reference value used for determining a matching in amatching operation of biometrics information on the second personagainst biometrics information on the first person in the second server.

(Supplementary Note 14)

The information processing system according to supplementary note 12,wherein a reference value used for determining a matching in a matchingoperation of biometrics information on the first person againstbiometrics information on the registrants in the first server is sethigher than a reference value used for determining a matching in amatching operation of biometrics information on the second personagainst biometrics information on the first person in the second server.

(Supplementary Note 15)

The information processing system according to any one of supplementarynotes 12 to 14, wherein a reference value at a matching operation ofbiometrics information on the second person against biometricsinformation on the first person in the second area is determined inaccordance with the number of times that the same person is detected inthe first area.

(Supplementary Note 16)

An information processing method comprising:

-   -   acquiring a first biometrics information group including        biometrics information on a first person detected from a first        image captured in a first area from a registered biometrics        information group including biometrics information on a        plurality of registrants; and    -   matching biometrics information on a second person detected from        a second image captured in a second area that is different from        the first area against biometrics information included in the        first biometrics information group.

(Supplementary Note 17)

The information processing method according to supplementary note 16further comprising:

-   -   detecting biometrics information on the second person from the        second image.

(Supplementary Note 18)

The information processing method according to supplementary note 16 or17 further comprising:

-   -   determining whether or not the second person is authorized for        passage from the second area to a restricted area based on a        matching result obtained by the matching.

(Supplementary Note 19)

The information processing method according to supplementary note 18further comprising:

-   -   controlling opening or closing of a door of a passage        restriction apparatus installed between the restricted area and        the second area based on whether or not the second person is        authorized for the passage.

(Supplementary Note 20)

The information processing method according to supplementary note 18 or19 further comprising:

-   -   acquiring balance information on the first person,    -   wherein the determining is performed further based on the        balance information.

(Supplementary Note 21)

The information processing method according to any one of supplementarynotes 16 to 20 further comprising:

-   -   storing the acquired first biometrics information group in a        storage unit; and    -   deleting, from the first biometrics information group,        biometrics information on the first person that matches a        predetermined condition.

(Supplementary Note 22)

The information processing method according to supplementary note 21,wherein the predetermined condition is that elapsed time from time ofregistration to the storage unit reaches predetermined time.

(Supplementary Note 23)

A program that causes a computer to perform:

-   -   acquiring a first biometrics information group including        biometrics information on a first person detected from a first        image captured in a first area from a registered biometrics        information group including biometrics information on a        plurality of registrants; and    -   matching biometrics information on a second person detected from        a second image captured in a second area that is different from        the first area against biometrics information included in the        first biometrics information group.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing apparatus comprising: amemory configured to store instructions; and at least one processorconfigured to execute the instructions to: acquire a biometricsinformation group including biometrics information on a plurality ofregistrants; perform a first matching process of matching biometricsinformation on a first person, detected from a first image captured in aplurality of first areas that is more distant from a restricted areathan a second area that, along a path from the plurality of first areasto the restricted area, is between the plurality of first areas and therestricted area, against the biometrics information group; identify afirst biometrics information group, including biometrics information onthe first person from the registered biometrics information group whichcomprises a plurality of biometrics information groups, based on amatching result of the first matching process; store the firstbiometrics information group; determine whether or not the first personis moving away from the restricted area based on the first image; anddelete the biometrics information on the first person from the firstbiometrics information group in a case where the first person is movingaway from the restricted area.
 2. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is furtherconfigured to execute the instructions to determine whether or not thefirst person is moving away from the restricted area based on anorientation of a face or a traveling direction of the first person inthe first image.
 3. The information processing apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured toexecute the instructions to: perform a second matching process ofmatching biometrics information on a second person, detected from asecond image captured in the second area, against biometrics informationincluded in the first biometrics information group; control at least oneof opening and closing of a door, of a passage restriction apparatusinstalled between the restricted area and the second area, based on amatching result in the second matching process, wherein each of theplurality of first areas is distant from the passage restrictionapparatus and is set to a position that the first person necessarilypasses through when moving from the plurality of first areas to thesecond area, and wherein the second area is outside of the passagerestriction apparatus.
 4. The information processing apparatus accordingto claim 3, wherein the at least one processor is further configured toexecute the instructions to detect the biometrics information on thesecond person from the second image based on feature amounts of thesecond person from the second image.
 5. The information processingapparatus according to claim 3, wherein the at least one processor isfurther configured to implement the instructions to determine whether ornot the second person is authorized for passage from the second area tothe restricted area based on the matching result in the second matchingprocess.
 6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5,wherein the at least one processor is further configured to implementthe instructions to: acquire balance information on the first person;and determine whether or not the second person is authorized for thepassage to the restricted area based on the matching result in thesecond matching process and on the balance information.
 7. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the atleast one processor is further configured to implement the instructionsto: store the acquired first biometrics information group; and delete,from the first biometrics information group, biometrics information onthe first person that matches a predetermined condition.
 8. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the atleast one processor is further configured to implement the instructionsto delete biometrics information on the first person for which elapsedtime from time of registration reaches predetermined time.
 9. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the atleast one processor is further configured to implement the instructionsto delete biometrics information on the first person when biometricsinformation on a third person detected from a third image captured in apredetermined monitoring area matches biometrics information on thefirst person.
 10. The information processing apparatus according toclaim 7, wherein the at least one processor is further configured toimplement the instructions to, when there are stored multiple pieces ofbiometrics information for the first person, delete biometricsinformation having an earlier time of registration.